Granular materials can segregate spontaneously due to differences in particle properties when subjected to process vibration, shear strain or because of the equipment geometries. Among the different properties, difference in particle size is the most relevant factor that drives segregation. Although size-driven segregation has serious technical implications in a lot of industrial processes, a fundamental understanding of the phenomenon is still lacking. Furthermore, models and theories on segregation are often validated with DEM simulations as an alternative to experiments. This leads to a shortage of experimental data. In this paper we experimentally investigate size-driven segregation of ternary mixtures of grains flowing down an inclined plane, for a range of mixture compositions. The segregation process is filmed through the transparent sidewall with a camera, and the evolution of the particle concentration is evaluated by means of post-processing image analysis. Since different-sized particles are of different colors, the post processing procedure consists in associating the color information of ?each pixel to the respective component. It is found that the segregation features are strictly related to the relative amount of the largest grains: a higher fraction of the larger particles improves mixing and reduces segregation.
